For most fighters, a release from the UFC could easily signal the end of their dreams.

For UFC light-heavyweight Eric Schafer (10-3-2 MMA, 2-2 UFC), it may have signaled the beginning of a career resurgence.

“I just don’t think I was ready mentally,” Schafer recently told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). “Now it’s a year-and-a-half later. I feel like a totally different fighter.”

Schafer debuted for the UFC with an impressive submission win over Rob MacDonald at UFC 62 in August 2006. But consecutive losses to Stephan Bonnar and Michael Bisping left Schafer on the outs with the organization.

Schafer used the opportunity to improve himself during a two-fight stint with the Gladiators Fighting Series, a Wisconsin-based organization.

“The most important thing was the mental aspect — just kind of the intangibles,” Schafer said. “I fought Bisping and Bonnar, and I was nervous. (And I had) a little bit of ring rust for the Bonnar fight. But the overall confidence and experience level went up after that fight.

“I’ve done a lot more jiu-jitsu tournaments. I feel a lot more at home in the ring. Fighting at my ability, I think I can hang with both of those guys. I thought I did; I just was super-nervous for that Bonnar fight and the Bisping fight.”

“Red” made a successful return to the UFC when he ventured into hostile territory at UFC Fight Night 15. Fighting feared striker Houston Alexander in his hometown of Omaha, Neb., Schafer knew what he was up against.

“I’m sure I was brought in a little bit to lose,” Schafer said. “You know, ‘Hopefully we can get a highlight-reel knockout on Red.”’

“But I was like, ‘Hey, this is my opportunity. Houston’s a tough guy, but he’s got a huge name — maybe a little bit bigger name than his fighting record deserves. What a great opportunity to steal some of his thunder, get my UFC track record back on track.’ I had to take advantage of it.”

Schafer did exactly that, and an arm-triangle choke forced a halt to the bout with just seven seconds remaining in the first round. The 31-year-old said earning his way back into the UFC was a critical moment in his life.

“It’s everything,” Schafer said. “There’s an attitude difference.

“I was a part-time fighter. You train, you do kind of mini-camps. But when you’re in the UFC, it’s like your life. You feel like you’ve got to live up to it. It forced me to get better. It forced me to get a striking coach and a conditioning coach, to eat perfectly, health-wise. Just the fact of being in the UFC, I’ve changed my whole lifestyle. If I was still fighting in the small leagues, I wouldn’t be the same guy I am today.”

Schafer will now take the next step in his return visit to the UFC with a preliminary card bout with Brazilian Antonio Mendes (15-3 MMA, 0-1 UFC). While Mendes is still a little-known commodity to most MMA observers, Schafer said he has done extensive research on his foe.

“In a bad way, he’s probably not going to get the credit he deserves,” Schafer said. “He’s 15-3. A lot of people only remember his one loss (to Thiago Silva at UFC 84), but the guy’s definitely a tough guy.

“He’s very hard to finish. He’s survived a lot of tough spots in a lot of fights. He’s gone two or three rounds with a lot of good guys. I’m ready. I’ve scouted him a little bit more than a lot of people have. I know how tough he is in a good way, and I also know his weaknesses because I’ve seen those fights.”

Mendes owns seven career knockouts or TKOs, and Schafer said he’s aware of his opponent’s striking prowess. But the Dick Roufus-trained fighter believes Mendes presents an entirely different set of challenges than Alexander.

“I think Antonio is definitely more technical than Houston on his feet,” Schafer said. “But I don’t think he has that same knockout impact. So with a guy like Houston, I was actually more afraid. Heck, I might even be able to land some punches on Houston, but he lands that one bomb I might be out. I was a little bit more afraid to strike with him.

“I just wanted to get [Alexander] down ASAP. Where as with a technical striker, you can kind of play around a little bit more — set it up and not have to worry about a Houston-level knockout power. He can knock me out, but most of Antonio’s wins are later in that fight. He picks you apart. In a good way you don’t have to worry so much about the one-blast knockout. In the longer fights, he’s actually going to be a little more dangerous.”

Schafer owns seven submission wins, compared to just one career TKO. While fighting on the mat seems an obvious tactic for Schafer, he has other goals in mind as well.

“I expect to be a little bit bigger and stronger then [Mendes],” Schafer said. “Hopefully I can muscle him around, push him in the fence, punch him in the face a few times, get him down and do my thing. He’s tough to finish though, so I’m not going to rush it.

“If he gives me a submission, I’ll take it, but I don’t want to go for 20 submissions and then blow my gas. I definitely want to wait for my opportunity and do a lot more ground and pound. That was my goal last time, too: Don’t just look for submissions.

“I really wanted to beat up Houston, which I think I did pretty well before the submission. A little more of the same. I don’t want to be just a jiu-jitsu guy. I want to do some ground-and-pound and make some guys fear that a little bit, too.”

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